starting a buisness

Think very carefully before you act. I was Director of a large HHA and went out on my own with some friends/partners. I wrote all the manuals, including HR and we passed inspection with flying colors. We had 2 MDs (male and female) who were going to refer lots of patients to us. Turned out they were having an affair, split up and moved out of town. Most of my partners were experienced in HH, however I was out voted on several issues including bringing in another partner. I got out, lost friends and money and they wound up selling out later. We had staff issues including theft. But...it could all turn out ok for you!!

Partnerships are fraught with problems. However, the OP did not mention any partners and was specifically asking about doh compliance paperwork.

I don't thing scare stories from naysayers are particularly helpful.

Looking at those forms probably SHOULD scare you ... :-)

Home health is tough. As Zenman, I've been there, and done that. A couple of questions come to mind:

1. How much experience in business have you had? If none, you may be biting off more than you want to, unless you have business partners. Opening a home health agency means you are essentially leaving nursing practice, and becoming an entrepreneur. Nothing wrong with that, but it requires a whole new range of skills, most of which are not taught in nursing school.

2. Are the forms you're looking at those for a certificate of need? If they are, you very likely need outside assistance in the process: attorneys, consultants, etc. Likewise, you'll need a considerable sum of money: the last time I checked (for North Carolina) it was around $250,000, and that was before a hha begins operations. I suspect it will be more in New York.

3. If the CON is not what you are speaking about, and the forms are just daunting, call the DOH, and ask your questions. Bureaucrats at agencies like that have a bad rep, but it's not always deserved: sometimes they can be very helpful.

4. Like eating an elephant, go through the forms one at a time, and one question at a time. And don't be afraid to go back again and again and again, and ask questions. If you get the right person, they may be able to help you out a great deal.

My God, did you get off the wrong side of the bed this am? I just thought I'd volunteer from my experience, which the original poster better get a lot of from as many people as possible. With forms all you do is read and follow the directions! If you can't fiqure that out you had better get out now. "Scare stories?" You better know the pros and cons before you lose hundreds of thousands of $$. With reimbursement and the complexity of healthcare like it is, I'd start a hamburger stand before I'd start a HHA!

I got up on the correct side and I am sorry you think a business in which many thrive is a bad one to do into because your precieved yours as having failed.

I am in as risky or riskier business and just as highly regulated if not more. And quite frankly the paper work required by my regulating agency is a nightmare. Even the regulators agree. There are so many variations of forms and formats that you need to use no one person at the regulatory agence knows how to do all of them.

Yet I must dot all my i's correctly.

The nightmare you describe has nothing to do with a home health business per-se. What you describe can happen even in a hamburger business.

I sorry you are so unhappy.

I think this is a lot of fun! I said that I would not want to run a HHA today. Just for the record, the HHA that I was director of was very successful. We covered 50 counties. So successful in fact that me and my director of operations was asked to present (and did so) at the 1994 Quest for Quality & Productivity in Health Services in Chicago. This was the Society for Health Systems of the Institute for Industrial Engineers and the theme was "Reengineering Healthcare Processes: The Key to Managing Quality and Cost. ...And I'm not even an Industrial Engineer! If you are familar with business you know that you must fail many times or you just have not been there. There were many reasons our own agency failed and many were due to my partners out voting me on critical issues. I got out so they could take it down their own path.

What do you mean it had nothing to do with a HHA agency...it was a HHA!

What??? You failed at psychic 101. I'm very happy because I chose to be so. I'm living in paradise! I just got back from eating in Honolulu and my wife had her hair cut...and she's always frisky after that! Yep, I'm really an unhappy fellow.

And if you ever want to know how to make 10k to 20k in a weekend with no regulatory hassles or employees, some day I might just tell you...if I want to!

Randall Sexton, RN, MSN, MBA, Dipl., ABT (NCCAOM), etc., etc, :rotfl:

And a pat on the head to you.

Randy, would you let ME know how to make 10 to 20 K on a weekend, please?

Me too, Me TOOOOO!

And me too, please!